DailyDirt: Big Data On Kid Development

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Long term studies of children are expensive, but the data collected may be invaluable -- especially if wide-ranging policies are based on them. The amount of data Facebook is collecting on kids may be massive, but it'll probably only be data mined for marketing purposes. Here are just a few examples of some kid research that could influence the way people raise their kids.

"Preschool seems to be important for disadvantaged kids, but the benefits for middle class kids are not as clear."

Makes sense. You don't learn anything in preschool that a good parent can't teach. But perhaps a family in poverty can't afford books to read to their children. And in some cases, simply getting them out of a bad environment for a few hours each day may help.